Category: Rotech Group News

Cost Saving Advice for Powering your Automatic Driveway Security Gate

For many commercial properties, automated gates are not just an optional extra, they are essential. Automated gates are secure, convenient and make your premises appear professional.

However, a downside for many businesses is the expense associated with getting 240v power to the perimeter of their property to operate the gate, particularly if the distance is great or covered with concrete.

Fortunately, there is a way around this which saves power and running costs while significantly reducing the cost of installation, without having to compromise on security.

Solar gate openers are now more efficient and affordable than ever, and they are the ideal choice for many Australian businesses and rural property owners.

Here are a few benefits of using solar for your automated gate opener:

Gate openers can be installed in remote locations. If you want to enhance security in a remote area that doesn’t have access to mains electricity, a solar gate opener is the easiest and most affordable way to do this. Because they don’t require connection to an external power supply, you won’t need to dig the ground up to run cables. Using solar you can have a functional, operational security gate up and running very quickly, with the minimum of disruption to the surrounding environment.

Improved security. Solar gate openers work even when there is a power blackout, so you can feel confident that your business won’t be vulnerable in the event of an outage. Battery back-up provides independence from the grid and gives everyone greater security, particularly after hours when your employees or visitors might otherwise be required to get out of their vehicles and manually open the gate.

Save money on installation and operation. Once you’ve bought and installed your solar gate opener, it costs virtually nothing to run. Solar power is readily available in Australia, and even on cloudy days, your opener will still be operational. With power bills rising year on year, many businesses are looking for ways to reduce their electricity usage and switching to solar for your gate opener is a simple and effective way to save costs.

Reducing your environmental footprint. Across all industries, businesses are very conscious of their environmental footprint these days and are taking proactive steps towards sustainability. Switching to solar is a great way to reduce your consumption of fossil fuels and create a more environmentally sustainable business.

Solar technology has gone through so many advances in the last few years, and there has never been a better time to make the switch. Using the power of solar for your automated gates you can save money, be environmentally friendly and improve security at your premises.

The electricity savings alone mean solar power is worth considering. But as you can see, there are many other benefits too. If you’d like to discuss installing solar gate openers in domestic, commercial or industrial settings, give us a call to find out more about the options.

Case Study| Boom Gates Essential for a Safe Landing

A NEW helicopter pad was opened last year at Tamworth hospital as part of a multi-million-dollar redevelopment project.

The limitations of the old heli-pad made it difficult to land if wind conditions were poor. The new heli-pad is better positioned and built closer to the emergency department to provide quick access to transport patients for urgent treatment.

Safety becomes an Issue: emergency helicopters vs road traffic

The new convenient location of the helicopter pad at Tamworth hospital created a unique set of circumstances:

Situated between the heli-pad and the hospital is Smith Street

Smith Street is a busy local roadway

When helicopters land and take off they create a downdraft as high as 89km

There is a danger to both vehicles and pedestrians from flying debris thrown by the high velocity flow near the rotor.

The proximity of the heli-pad to Smith Street means any vehicle or pedestrian in the vicinity while an emergency helicopter is trying to land or take off would be adversely affected by a strong downdraft.

As with all helicopter emergency cases, time is critical – a solution to safely managing access to the common traffic area between the aircraft and motor vehicles needed to involve a very quick response time.

The Boom Gate Solution

Rotech worked with Steensen Varming to devise an effective resolution to the issue of how to stop both the outgoing and incoming traffic in Smith Street when a helicopter was in the vicinity.

The result was to install two boom gates at along Smith Street to stop vehicle access and fit pedestrian warning lights at appropriate locations.

To save precious time – a long range transmitter fitted to the helicopter activates the following equipment from up to 20 km away:

Turn on

Existing helipad lights

Wind sock lights

Flood lights

Pedestrian warning lights

Ambulance warning light

Boom gates close

30 seconds after the warning lights are activated the boom gates come down – this allows any traffic in the midstream to pass beyond the danger zone before the helicopter reaches the heli-pad.

Rotech’s solution plays an important role in getting patients quickly and safely from the heli-pad into the emergency department for treatment.

We have been fulfilling all types of automation control demands for more than 15 years with a wide variety of products. Customised solutions are our speciality – we are certain that with our extensive range and high level of expertise, we will be able to provide you and your business with a customised solution to suit your need.

Case Study|De Costi Seafood’s Production Area Access Control System

When it comes to De Costi Seafood, Australia’s leading Seafood Company, the first thing that comes to mind is quality. They are extremely particular about their product as well as service. In order to provide the best to their consumers, they not only need to ensure that they provide fresh seafood, but also maintain the hygiene levels at their processing sites.

To control the entry and exit into their production areas and ascertain that the workers maintain a high level of hygiene, they required a smart solution. De Costi Seafood was in need of an access control system that could regulate the movement of personnel to and from the production areas. They also needed to make sure that the workers washed their hands and then use a disinfectant before entering those areas.
At the entry into Production, De Costi Seafood has a ‘Sanitising room’ and every worker is required to wash his hands and walk through an automated foot bath, which then leads to the turnstile provided by Rotech. This was a special turnstile made of 316-stainless steel, also known as food grade stainless steel, which made it suitable for food processing and handling. The turnstile was integrated with an Alcohol Disinfectant spray that is automatically sprayed when the staff put their hands under it. It was also connected to a hand scanner, which monitored the employees’ clock in time. So unless the employees disinfect and scan their hands, the turnstile will not unlock and they will be unable to enter the production zone. When the employees exit the production area they use the hand scanner to clock out.

The management staff also needed to access the production area; however, since scanning their hands would deduct time off their work hours, they required a separate access control device. Generally, they would have been given access using an RFID reader and an ID card, but because the production area is a place with high exposure to water, ID cards were not a very convenient option. Rotech provided silicon wrist bands for the management, which were not only waterproof and easy to wear, but also ensured that time was not deducted from the management personnel’s work hours. The wrist bands could also be washed on a regular basis, eliminating even the slightest chances of contamination.

To maintain the hygiene of the ‘Sanitising Room’, De Costi Seafood ensures that it is cleaned and washed every night. This called for a waterproof turnstile, so the Tristar J series turnstile provided by Rotech was the perfect choice as it has IP65 protection, which makes the turnstile completely waterproof, ensuring a longer life-span.

Case Study | Access Control for 2000 Caval Ridge Mine Site Workers

When nearly 2000 mine workers access and egress the Caval Ridge site daily, one can only imagine the chaos that could occur if there was no access control. The workers were systematically transported from their accommodation village to the mine site by buses that collected and dropped them at the designated pick-up/drop-off points. However, the entry and exit of the workers to and from the site needed to be monitored.

To ensure safety and compliance with QLD Coal Mine Safety and Health Act, BMA’s primary goal was to obtain a solution that would not only facilitate easy accessibility for the workers but also capture live data of personnel who had entered/exited the site.

It was envisaged that this would be partly achieved through the use of Badge Scan Units (BSU) to scan employee IDs at the entrance and exit of the site; and partly through a turnstile, to control the movement of personnel. BMA therefore needed a turnstile system that could be easily integrated with the Badge Scan Units.

Moreover, with a high volume of workers and only two bus pick-up/drop-off points, the potential for delays to the project was substantial should one of the BSUs or turnstiles malfunction. Hence, a turnstile with high-throughput and superior reliability was critical for BMA.

They selected TriStar J Series turnstiles from Rotech.
The waist-high turnstiles were situated at the entry and exit points of the site, and were integrated with BMA’s Badge Scan Units. This enabled the workers to swipe their ID cards to activate the turnstiles before boarding the buses or entering the site. The solution provided by Rotech also included boom gates mounted with BSUs to control vehicular traffic.

The TriStar turnstile system supplied by Rotech not only increased the efficiency of transporting personnel to and from the site, but also promoted a safer working environment by tracking and controlling mine access.

The Rotech turnstile system is capable of allowing 25 people per minute, enabling BMA to achieve a goal of a four-minute turnaround to fully load/unload each bus. Other features of the TriStar J Series turnstile that make it ideal for high volume traffic sites include:

Robust, stainless steel cabinet

Active arm which drops in case of emergency

Turnstile locks only if unauthorised access is attempted, reducing power consumption and wear on mechanism

Turnstile can be integrated with any access control system.

Rotech has over 30 years’ experience in supplying high quality turnstiles and pedestrian access solutions for industrial and commercial projects. We locally manufacture boom gates, turnstiles and industrial door operators, so our solutions can be designed and manufactured to meet customer specifications. Products can also be sourced from a worldwide network of suppliers and customised for individual customer requirements. Rotech proudly supplies customers with a fast and professional service supported by strong technical back-up.